What? It's Only Been Eighteen Months?

It's sometimes hard to believe, but I've been in Los Angeles for eighteen months. Hard to believe because it's not that long a time. I must once again extend a great, big thank you to all the people out there who have supported me in this life changing move. So, here's a brief recap of the results of the last eighteen months.



(Cavorting on Vasquez Rocks during a recent much needed trip out of LA. Photo by E. Nagode.)

I've submitted to over 850 productions. I've auditioned over 80 times. I wound up appearing in three different episodes of "One Against Dumb". I had a featured extra role in "Ataru - The First Love & The Last Kill", which I haven't seen and probably landed on the ol' cutting room floor. I appeared in "Unusual Suspects" as a Witness and in "America's Court" as a Litigant and no, I haven't seen either of those shows. Hmmm, am I detecting a trend here? Yep, I don't have cable TV. I've also appeared in a supporting role as the Theatre Producer in the short film, "Incendiary". Also, I've been on [late night show name redacted] over 50 times now, although you often wouldn't see me.

Now what? Oh, there have been a few attempts at attracting an agent without any results as yet. But, I admit it's not a top priority and I do need to get a few more credits under my belt before the "agent thing" becomes a more credible route. Certainly, the contacts I've been making have been very helpful and will continue to be so. Did I expect to be a little more along with more gigs by this point? Possibly. However, given my age range, still relative newness to the biz here in "industry town" and comparing it to the previous four years, I actually feel pretty damn lucky.
 

Adapt Or Die

(photo credit: E. L. Nagode)

So, you have a gig and have a few days to work on a character. Then, you show up on set and the director doesn't like the character you've spent so much time and energy to develop. What do you do? Simple. You adapt or die.

The piece you are a part of is the director's baby, and, as often is the case in the world of short films, the director is also the writer and/or producer. So what if the character you've developed is rejected, adapt it to what the director wants. Use your skills and (hopefully) experience to achieve what is being asked of you and not only will the director be happy, but you will be, too. That character that was rejected is still there and more than likely can be put to use on another project. Or even pieces of the character.

I know it seems cliched, but thinking about rejected characters in these terms is all part of the positive attitude you need to have in order keep most, if not all, of your sanity in the insane world known as show business. I know what happens if you cannot adapt enough: you don't get called back. I recently went in for an audition with the most delicious Southern accent of all time. After greeting the director, he promptly informed me that he decided he didn't want the character to have an accent after all. I did the scene but was very uncomfortable, unwilling to fully adapt, and consequently didn't get a call back. But, it was a valuable reminder that you must be ready for anything, that you must adapt or die. Metaphorically, of course.